Case Study
MedicalConsumablesDistributor
A lean 10-person team distributing medical consumables, surgical instruments, and procedure sets to hospitals and clinics. Growth was tripling revenue and pushing the team toward 20+ employees, but operations ran on spreadsheets, email, and a simple accounting tool. We mapped the business, evaluated five ERP platforms against medical compliance requirements, and implemented Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central as the operational backbone.
The Client
A Swiss distributor of medical consumables, surgical instruments, and procedure sets supplying around 10 active hospitals and clinics. Roughly 8 manufacturers as suppliers across Europe and Asia, two warehouses (one externally managed, one internal), and a value proposition built on regulatory compliance (CE, EU MDR, ISO 13485), advisory support, and customized surgical sets. The 10-person team handled everything across spreadsheets and email. Growth target: triple revenue and scale to 20+ employees within months, no re-platforming.
The engagement
Requirements and Architecture
Three structured workshops with management and key operational stakeholders mapped the end-to-end flow from suppliers to customers: procurement, inventory and warehouse handling, sales fulfillment, pricing logic, and supporting administrative activities. Output: a documented system blueprint with process maps, data model outlines, and integration points, plus a shortlist of candidate ERP, PIM, and BI platforms.
Tool Evaluation
Hands-on testing and structured scoring of five ERP platforms (Odoo Enterprise, SAP Business One, Oracle NetSuite, Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central, Acumatica) against medical compliance requirements: native FEFO picking, expiry blocking, immutable audit trails, batch traceability, landed cost calculation, and multi-warehouse support. Plus extensibility, total cost of ownership, and growth fit. Output: validated platform selection and a pilot prototype demonstrating key workflows.
Implementation
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central configured as the operational backbone. Product data (PIM) and warehouse modules set up with initial data loads. Add-ons integrated for email, documentation, and reporting. BI dashboards prepared for product profitability and stock visibility. Operational hand-over delivered along with the foundations for future AI use: clean schemas, consistent IDs, and governance basics.
The outcome
5 ERP platforms rigorously evaluated
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central selected
Native FEFO and expiry blocking
Real-time BI on product profitability
Scales from 10 to 20+ users without re-platforming
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From spreadsheets to a scalable ERP foundation that grows from 10 to 20+ users without re-platforming. Want to know what an ERP foundation could do for your operations? Start with a Diagnostic.
Start with a Diagnostic